Resident Evil: Salvation Sequel to 'Revenge'
by Thedragoness821
Summary: As deaths start mounting, Alice decides to go after Umbrella on her own but will she realize in time where her true place lies? focused on Alice/Carlos. PLEASE R & R.
1. Chapter 1

**Resident Evil: salvation**

_Author's notes: Hello again all, finally we are at the part everyone is wondering how it will go. My version is just one view of many, I'm just putting it out there, take it at face value. Also for those who reviewed, I want to thank you so very much, even if there are negatives to come (there aren't any yet, but its early still LOL) that's ok if you don't like it, your feedback will help me further better my writing skills. Its always been a challenge for me to get my thoughts to come out onto paper, writing fan fiction has bettered that, but I still have some difficulty with it… that & remembering details LOL. Also I know my paragraphs tend to get a tad long, my chapters too. Im sorry for this, but when the ideas start flowing I cant stop them. so I just go back & separate them later LOL. Oh, I also would like a beta, please _

_Summary: The final battle against Umbrella has now begun (Sorry, I don't have a better summery then that LOL). _

**Disclaimer: Own nothing, claim nothing, yadda yadda.**

Chapter 1

"Everyone, to the bottom of the ship!" Chris yelled as the choppers drew near. "No! everyone stays where they are, we're going to need every last one off you! Chris… YOU head for cover." Alice said, Carlos laughed at the tone she chose to say it in. Chris gave her an indignant 'why ME?' look, but complied none the less, with a smirk on her face, she turned back to the fleet of choppers. "Ready?" She said to Carlos, "I was born ready." He replied as he took hold of her hand. She shut her eyes & began to concentrate. All the survivors moved forward & put their hands on her, those who could not, placed their hands on the person in front of them, the whole group began to glow. In the leading aircraft Jill leaned over the pilot. "What the hell…?" Suddenly, a collective blast of energy surged towards the fleet of choppers, ultimately destroying them all. Chris appeared, feeling like a coward. "Don't worry, your time to fight will come." Alice said, noticing his embarrassment. "So… what now?" "First we find somewhere safe to regroup & plan our next move, then, we head for Vancouver." Alice replied

"This is…. Nice." K-mart said hesitently as the ship idled into a mountain cave off the coast of Hawaii. They drifted until they could go no further, then they dropped anchor. "Rock blocks Satellite signals, especially this kind of rock, volcanic rock, heavy with Iron from the earth's core." Alice said. The cave opened up into a seemingly endless maze of caverns, & tunnels. "So, now what?" Carlos asked Alice as they walked next to an emerald cave pool, Alice wouldn't meet his gaze, the dancing light off the water exacerbated her worried expression, it was in this moment that it dawned on him how much this whole ordeal with Umbrella had aged her, not physically since she couldn't age thanks to the T virus. He worried for her, this woman, this incredible woman, even if she were devoid of super abilities she would be incredible, perhaps even more so, since she wouldn't always have to play the manly part of defender & protector. Not that she was masculine by nature, it was just the part she was forced to play. 'Not any more' he thought to himself, he looked at his own arms. Outwardly, they didn't look any different, he didn't look any different but _felt_ the power coursing through his veins, in his cells, burrowing ever deeper into him. But unlike Alice, he liked this strange, new feeling of being so strong, so… _manly_. He chuckled at this juvenile, cave man train of thought. "What are you smirking at?" Alice said, she wore a look of slight annoyance, knowing immediately that he hadn't heard a word she'd said. "Typical….. _men_." She said. "Well, its not our fault you women talk too much." He said jokingly, she turned on him. "What was that?" She quipped. "You heard me." He said as he assumed a fighting stance, Alice eagerly took him on in a spar, she was curious to see what mad skills her buddy Bozz had bestowed onto him.

They threw each other backward, sweaty & breathing heavily. Neither could penetrate the others defenses. "Damn, you've gotten good." Alice said as she drew her twin machetes & had them scissoring his throat before he could even react. "I win." She said with a playful smile on her face, Carlos closed the distance between them in three steps & kissed her passionately, they began tearing away at each other's clothes, desperate to have no barriers between them, neither of them could explain the savage, primal, animalistic feelings that overcame them every time they were as much as sharing the same breathing space. Alice had kept people at arm's length to protect them, but she had never been able to do that with Carlos, the more she had tried the harder she was drawn to him… perhaps it was his accent… she always had a bit of a thing for a man with an accent. Or, maybe it had something to do with the T virus, & maybe it didn't, but Carlos recognized them as being the same feelings that had surged through him the first time he laid eyes on her in that abandoned school amidst the ruins of Raccoon city all those years ago. But it wasn't just physical, this was it, he was head over heels for this woman & nothing was going to separate them again… even if they had to die together. "Where in the hell have you two been?" Claire asked as K-mart let out a giggle "Eh… exploring, checking things out." Carlos said as he met Alice's gaze & he grinned his shit eating grin at her. "You're such a bad liar, Carlos." Claire said, a small smile playing on her face. "Hey ….. I said I was 'checking things out' ….. so technically its not completely a lie." He replied with a small smile.

"Sir, I'm sorry but our satellites have lost all trace of the Arcadia, & Project Alice." Wesker's eyes grew red, the scientists cringed, even though he was merely a hologram, thousands of miles away, he still frightened them. "Then….. I suggest that you get to work on _finding them_." he said as he ended the transmission. "He makes it sound as though our lives depend on finding this bitch & this fucking ship." One of the techs said. "That's because it does." Another replied, he had been working for Umbrella since the initial Hive incident, he knew if Wesker threatened someone, he meant it.

"alright everyone, this place is great, I know, everyone feels safe here. But eventually we're going to run out of supplies, we're going to have to breach the surface sometime." Claire said as they all gathered around a fire for a group meeting on their next move. "I'll go." Came a voice from the back. "Alice, no! are you _trying_ to get yourself killed or worse captured again by Umbrella? God knows what they'd do to you, I won't let you do it." He said, she studied him, there was a glint in his eyes that told her his mind was made up, his brow was furrowed & the muscles in his jaw flexed as he ground his teeth. Alice took in a deep breath before she began to explain. "That's exactly the reason why I have to go, they are looking for me, but don't forget, I'm not defenseless." She said, a small smile playing on her pretty face. "Neither am I, that's why I'm coming with you." She shook her head. "No way, Besides, this group needs someone to protect them while I'm gone." "Carlos, I'm sorry but she's got a valid point." Claire interjected, Carlos gave her a dejected look as he pushed past them.

"It was hard for him, You know? before you showed up, LJ loved to tell his stories about what an ass kicking, zombie slaying, bad ass bitch you were. How you fought Nemesis & won, & how you got them all out of Raccoon City. Carlos would always leave when he would start, I never asked him about it, but I know that losing you hurt him, you should take him with you, besides he'd probably drive us all crazy with his pacing & worrying." Claire said, Alice smiled in understanding, like she could have stopped him anyway, he was as hard headed as she was. "Don't worry, we won't go until we absolutely have to, I Don't want to be on the surface any more then I have to." Alice said.

"Listen…" Alice said as she walked up on Carlos, who was sitting on a stalagmite overlooking the cave lake. He didn't even spook at her sudden presence, she knew he had sensed her from a long way off. She couldn't sneak up on him anymore. "I've decided to let you accompany me on my trips to the surface, not that I could stop you anyway." She said in an effort to lighten his somber mood. His face remained stone like as he turned to face her, not meeting her eyes. The reflection off the lake played off his face, accentuating his dark expression. "Alice, why do you always exclude me?" He asked, the hurt in his voice was evident, she opened her mouth to answer, but he continued. "You are always the one to volunteer for the suicide missions, always going it alone, alienating the ones closest to you, always tgrying to be the great protector when cant you see? YOU'RE the one that needs protection, Umbrella is after YOU, not us…not even me… YOU. Your blood is the cure to the T virus, but they have to kill you to get it, at least to get enough if it to do what they are planning with it. None of us want that for you, Alice _I_ don't want that for you, I don't know what I would do if…: He trailed off, fighting a lump in his throat. Alice put a hand on his shoulder. "Carlos, its not you or anyone else. Your right, it IS me, I know they want me dead to harvest my blood for a T virus cure. I know that's why they 'let' you regenerate me, they knew I'd come back stronger, even more resilient then before with stronger abilities. The bright side is that if anyone is bit, you already have the antidote." She said with a small smile. "That's nothing to joke about, Alice." Carlos replied.


	2. Chapter 2

Salvation Chapter 2

**Disclaimer: Own nothing, claim nothing.**

"Be careful, you guys." Claire said as they gathered their things." Is there room for one more?" A voice said, they turned around to see a woman who looked to be about thirty give or take, her skin was fair & her hair was a shade of light brown. Alice took notice of the three tattoos on her arms, a dragon on her right, a Pegasus & the portrait of a dog's bust on her left. She was tall, staring Alice dead straight in the eye. "Sure, we could use another set of eyes & hands." Carlos said. "So…. You are?..." "Oh, Im sorry! My name is Stella Daniels." "Your infected." Alice replied, Stella's expression sobered. "Yes… I' am, I was captured by Umbrella in Florida when I answered a call for survivors, the next thing I remember I was waking up in a surgical type room with all of these wires attached to me." As she spoke, Alice had flashbacks of waking up in a similar fashion. "I caught up with Claire's convoy & traveled with them." & Umbrella? They never came looking for you?" Stella's mouth upturned into a dry smile. "Nope, guess I wasn't special enough. I have some abilities, but nothing like yours." She said, unable to keep the awe out of her voice. "Yeah …. Consider yourself lucky." Alice said flatly.

Luckily, in Hawaii's tropical climate, the orchards society left behind faired fairly well. "Kmart will like these, she loves fruit." Alice said as they picked peaches, apples & oranges. "That girl, she really likes you, she talks about you all of the time. Every time you use your abilities to do something she calls it 'awesome' & 'cool'." Stella said with a smile, Alice didn't reply, Carlos noticed how uncomfortable she became, she never liked to be called out as the heroine or savior, she preferred to be in the shadows, an anti-heroine of sorts. "This fruit is great, but we're going to need more then that to feed 2000 people." Carlos said, "No! if you use your abilities, they will find you, that's how they found me in the middle of the dessert three years ago!" Alice said as she gripped his arm painfully, he was glad for his powers, if it hadn't been for them she would have broken his arm. "Alice we don't have a choice, there is no other way & the longer we stay topside the more risk we run of being found out anyway." Stella said.

"Thanks, guys, I know you all were taking a risk doing that." Claire said an hour or so later when they returned stocked to the hilt with food. Of course it took more than one trip, but when one has genetically enhanced speed, it took them a day to do what would take a team of normal people a week. "even if they tracked us, the volcanic rock the Hawaiian islands are made of will still mess with their signal, it wont be accurate. I doubt Wesker will authorize action on a thirty or forty percent chance." "You hope." Claire said. "Hey come on, ladies! Why so negative? Look on the bright side for a change, eh?" Carlos quipped, Alice rolled her eyes, sometimes Carlos' lighthearted approach to the world they now live in rubbed her nerves the wrong way, sometimes she was concerned that he didn't take their new situation concerning their new powers & the increased interest Umbrella will have in him seriously.

"How much of a chance is it?" Wesker asked Dr. Mika, who had been put in charge of the arduous task of finding Project Alice, a cursed job if there ever was one. Every person appointed to the task having anything to do with Project Alice ended up dead either by Alice directly or by the twisted corporation they worked for. "A thirty seven percent chance, sir, the iron content in the landscape of the Hawaiian islands scrambles our signal." Dr. Mika said, "organize a team." Wesker replied. At the mouth of the cave in Hawaii where she staked her post as night watchmen, Alice sat bolt upright in the darkness, weapon at the ready, she had been dreaming that Umbrella knew where she was, she didn't know how but she had a terrible feeling that they had discovered her. "Alice? what's wrong?" Carlos was at her side in an instant & pulled her against him in an embrace. "Wesker…. He knows where I' am." "Are you sure?" Alice nodded silently, she could taste the fear rising in the back of her throat as it formed a knot in her chest. Fear not for her but for those she somehow always found herself charged with protecting. She made a silent decision that she wouldn't let Umbrella hurt any more innocent people because of her.

Claire & Carlos raced up to the mouth of one of the caves that faced the ocean, far in the distance, a small army of Umbrella choppers headed towards them. "Common, I'll ready everyone…" "No! not this time, I know why they are coming here, they want me, so let's give them what they want. I'm not going to let more people die because of me, too many people have died…" Alice trailed off, thinking of all those who had been lost. "Alice… what are you _saying_…?" Carlos trailed off, the horrible nauseous feeling in his gut told him that he wasn't going to like the answer. "Wesker wants 'Project Alice', I'm going to give him what he wants." "Turn yourself over to Umbrella? Alice that's crazy you don't know what they'll do to you!" Claire said, from somewhere behind Claire & Carlos, they heard a sob, suddenly, Alice was knocked back by an impact. "You can't! I won't let you!" Kmart's tearful voice was muffled against Alice's shoulder, Alice sighed as she embraced the girl she had grown very fond of. "I wish I could explain this in a way that you would understand, Kmart." Alice said, feeling tears sting her eyes as they now heard the drone of engines, the fleet was near, the group of original survivors from the convoy in the dessert embraced Alice in a collective, tear-filled hug before parting to allow her through, at the bottom of the cave, Carlos stood, waiting. "Alice…" He trailed off as she pulled him into a tight embrace. "I love you." She whispered into his ear & in an instant she was gone, Claire & Kmart put their arms around him as they turned & headed towards the Arcadia, they had passengers to protect, just in case Umbrella didn't keep their word. Dr. Mika & a slew of Umbrella officers exited the first chopper with laser scopes trained at Alice's chest, she dropped her weapons & put her hands in the air, Mika smiled triumphantly. "Wise decision."


	3. Chapter 3

**Chapter 3**

**Disclaimer: don't worry, I claim & own nothing.**

"Project Alice… so many years chasing you & you just decide to give yourself up? Just like that?" Wesker said, Alice shrugged defiantly, that trademark smirk spread across her beautiful face. "Got tired of running." She said flatly. "We searched the Island & we found no trace of the Arcadia or the other survivors, where are they. Alice?" "I don't know what you are talking about." She replied in her trademark cold, smug fashion. "oh, I happen to think that you _do_. Why else would you turn yourself in?" Alice sighed." "Too many innocent lives have been lost because of me & besides, if my blood holds the cure to the virus & will restore humanity, then so be it. Sacrifice a few to save many…. You know. isngt that the slogen of this company?" She said. "She's all yours, Dr. Mika." Wesker said, smiling triumphantly as a team of lab techs took her away.

In the months following, Alice spent most of her time barely conscious, strapped to a gurney with transfusion IV tubes running to a machine that pumped her blood, she was at the mercy of the scientists who treated her like a dairy cow, taking liter after liter of blood, leaving only enough to barely keep her alive. Her vision failed her, she was too weak, but she could make out some of what they were saying. "Sir, if we take any more, we'll lose her." One of the techs said as they ended another milking session. "Okay, allow her to recover, as she will quickly, we'll restart the process as soon as we can." He said as they injected her blood directly into one of the test zombies there was an immediate change in the creature's behavior. Gone were the carnivorous tendencies, the creature completely ignored the severed arm & leg on the table in front of it & went straight for the objects to its left which consisted of a camera, cell phone, a book & a simple puzzle. Just like the first specimens Dr. Isaacs had worked with, these knew what they were & used them accordingly. But the huge difference became apparent when they came to the puzzle; these also became frustrated when they couldn't find the square hole for the square piece, but they listened to reason & learned when they were shown how to do it right. Mika & the scientists who worked for him & even Wesker were astonished. Now there was the task of administering the serum to the world's population of zombies.

In time, the scientists found that what the undead lost in carnivorous tendencies they gained in _aggressive _tendencies towards their fellow untreated undead & amazingly they seemed to know the difference. Dr. Mika set out to find a way to alter the virus that was already in the system of the undead to transmit the cure made from Alice's blood.

"Carlos, we all want to save Alice, but running in there hell bent for leather, without a plan would be suicide & spending your days & nights pacing & fidgeting is driving us all CRAZY!" Claire said as she gripped him by the shoulders. In the months following Alice's surrender, everyone including Carlos was certain she was bluffing Umbrella, 'allowing' them to take her in just to escape later like she always did; like they knew she COULD. There could only be one reason; she didn't WANT to escape….. but why? They all looked at one another, all on the same track of thought, they had to find out.


	4. Chapter 4

**Salvation, Chapter 4**

**Disclaimer: I OWN nothing & CLAIM nothing**

Mika & the team of scientists cheered & high-fived each other, even Wesker looked happier then anyone had ever remembered seeing him. Dr. Mika's serum made from Alice's blood had allowed his body to finally win for war against the T virus, the 'cured' zombies had been set loose to 'disinfect' the world's population of undead inhabitants in a reverse of the initial infection. At last the end was near…. & it was a promising end for a change. "Sir, there is one problem." Dr. Mika said feebly to Wesker, who did a sharp one eighty to face him, Mika swallowed hard, seeing his nervous reflection in Wesker's blacked out shades. "Project Alice… she isn't regenerating her blood supply anymore, her vitals are no longer improving. It seems as though she is 'tapped out', for lack of a better explanation." "Do we have enough of the serum made?" "Yes, sir, the undead should transmit it on their own, but we have enough to finish the job if they do not." Mika replied, "Then store her away, no use wasting Umbrella funds on something that has been such a problem for us if she is of no use anymore." Mika & his scientists exchanged glances, they found it peculiar for Umbrella to be uninterested in salvaging something they had sunk so much of their money into, but he didn't get to the position that he was in this outfit by asking questions… he just did as he was told.

As they approached the Umbrella facility, the Washington branch, a sickening feeling came over Carlos & he stopped dead in his tracks, causing the succession of convoy survivors to bump into one another. "What the hell, Carlos?" Claire said indignantly as she pushed her hat off her face. "We have to hurry!" He said, ignoring her outburst as he broke into a run, the others followed without questioning him. Carlos didn't have to check every inch of the facility, something was pulling him toward an area in the back of the building where Umbrella kept their more… unstable experiments. They leapt down from the AC vent off the wall into a damp, clammy room with a moist cement floor & a high, flat ceiling. The room was lined with containers fairly similar to the ones that used to house the lickers. Carlos slowly made his way to one at the end of the row in the rear of the room, he wiped the condensation off the small viewing window, his heart was now racing so fast that he could no longer decipher the individual beats.

The lifeless face of Alice was barely visible against the condensed glass. "We have to get her out of there!" Carlos said as he stuck a crowbar between the lock & the door. "Uh…. Excuse me, but I have a better way." Stella said as she pushed in front of them with a tablet in hand. After what seemed like an eternity, the hatch popped & the door slowly opened with a rusty, protesting groan. Cold, foggy condensed air with a musty underscore met them as it escaped into the room. Carlos reached forward & gently scooped Alice into his arms, taken aback by how cold she was to the touch. But, at least she was still breathing. "I cant believe that Umbrella isn't stopping us." Claire said as they shimmied up the latter of a manhole to the street level. "If they aren't, that isn't a good sign… it means that… they probably think she… won't make it." Stella said, Carlos felt his stomach come to reside in his feet upon hearing that. She couldn't be dead, she just _couldn't_. A lump formed in his throat at this thought. "Lets get her back to the Arcadia & see what we can do, I'm not going to make any promises." Stella said.

"How is she?" Carlos said, unable to keep the vibration out of his voice, rising to his feet as Stella emerged from Alice's room in the hospital wing of the Arcadia. "Same, I don't understand it, the virus is still present in her blood, same as it has always been, but it isn't regenerating her like it should be. There is no reason why it shouldn't; they didn't give her anything to negate it. Its like she doesn't _want_ to get well or something." She said as she rubbed her forehead, she looked exhausted. "I'm sorry, Carlos. I've done all I can. The rest is up to her now." "C- can I sit with her?" He asked, his deep voice was uncharacteristically small, Stella gave a small smile as she waved him the ok.

"Alice." Carlos whispered as he pulled up a hard, metal chair next to her bedside, & took her hand in his, careful to mind the IV's she was hooked to. She looked like she was sleeping, so angelic & innocent, free of the worry, stress & anguish that came with this new world they lived in, controlled by Umbrella. A light bulb of thought went off in Carlos' head perhaps that's what it was, she just didn't have the will to go on living anymore, tears trickled down his rugged, handsome face as he squeezed her hand. "You think that you & your friends would be better off if you were dead… but you're wrong. We need you….. _I_ need you, I can't … can't … go on without you. Alice…. _Please_…." He choked out as tears ran down his face, he put his hand over her heart & closed his eyes. A warm glow began illuminating from beneath his hand, weather he was aware he was doing this or not was unclear, his eyes remained tightly shut & his head bowed… he was praying, an uncommon sight these days. Most people had given up the hope & faith it takes to inspire prayer, accepting the fact that they were already in hell. There was an old saying, "when there was no more room in hell, the dead would walk the earth." Perhaps it was man's punishment for fucking things up. But he didn't understand why Alice was dealt such a shitty hand, she had, of course in his opinion done nothing wrong, but he supposed that it was Umbrella's way of punishing her for betraying their secrets… or trying to.

"What if she doesn't make it?" Stella said as she, Claire & the gang waited outside the ship's medical ward, Claire shook her head as she took a long drag off her cigarette. "I don't want to think about that, Carlos has been through a lot…. I know that everyone has been through 'a lot' but with Carlos its different because we all love him. If she doesn't make it, it might be the straw that breaks the camel's back." Claire said, her voice cracking, her hair hiding her expression as she studied the floor. Stella heard the Arcadia groan as the water shifted under her, the tide must be coming in; her vocalizations seemed to mirror their feelings. Suddenly, a shockwave shook the entire ship, it came from the direction of the medical ward.

"W-what the fuck was that?" Kmart said as she joined Claire, Stella & the others at the door to Alice's room. "See for yourself… & watch your mouth!" Claire scolded her, Kmart took in an excited breath as she saw Alice awake in bed, Carlos was passed out on her chest, Alice put her finger to her lips, asking them to stay silent, she wanted Carlos to wake on his own so they could reunited properly. The rest of the gang nodded as they closed the door to give them their privacy. Carlos opened his eyes, his surroundings were foggy & unrecognizable he lay back for a moment, then, Alice's voice entered his conscious. _"You know, Carlos, I have you to thank, I gave up on myself, thanks for not following me on my self-pity streak." _She said, he couldn't see her face, but her voice was unmistakable; deep & sexy with a hint of mystery. Not something one would expect coming out of a woman so feminine & petite. he wasn't sure if it was the sound of her voice in his mind's ear or what but something jolted him quite rudely from his dream, his vision cleared & the smirking face of Alice came into focus. They both leapt forward & embraced, Carlos was unable to keep the tears back any longer & sobbed uncontrollably into her shoulder.

"So that's it? Its all over?" we can just buy a house with a white picket fence & shit?" Claire said. "I don't think it's that simple, there is still the subject of Umbrella." Carlos said. "I think we should go get em'." She said with a menacing grin.


	5. Chapter 5

Chapter 5

Albert Wesker did an about-face in his chair as the army of Chris, Claire, Carlos, Alice & the other Arcadia survivors who were knowledgeable in combat burst in; with Umbrella's supreme surveillance he knew they were coming & he could have stopped them but it would be more fun for him to stop them personally. He always had a penchant for crushing the goals & dreams of others, he was evil like that. "Alice." He said as he stood in one fluid motion with all the grace that the T 9 virus gave him, a chilling smile crept its way across his face. Albert Wesker could have been considered a handsome man if it weren't for the fact that he was pure evil impersonated. "I hope your choice of friends is wiser than last time." He said as a small army of Umbrella goons entered the room, the two sides clashed in Wesker's posh office as Alice & Wesker circled each other. Wesker made the first move, Alice dodged but just barely, Wesker's abilities equaled her own, it was like fighting herself. It seemed like forever, their battle went on, neither able to pierce the other's defenses. But Wesker's 'version' if the virus was different, kind of like an anti-version of the strain that coursed through Alice's veins. Apparently, the virus had the ability to form a new strain based on the person it invaded. If the person wasn't strong enough, they would mutate like Isaacs, or even more tragically, Matt. Matt….. the thought of him & all the others who had their lives destroyed filled Alice with rage, she promised that she would get even with Umbrella, she hated that smug smile on Wesker's face but she had a secret weapon; concealed in the sleeve of her duster was a syringe filled with a pure sample of her blood, drawn straight from her veins only hours ago. He shot at her again, she waited until the last possible second & dodged him, as she did, she plunged the syringe deep into his neck.

Wesker let out a bellow that made the whole office shake, all the action came to a halt as everyone turned, curious of what was going on. Wesker growled through gritted teeth & gripped Alice by the throat with one hand, his other still clamped over the injection site & lifted her right off her feet. "You'll pay for that." He said as she choked & sputtered for air & blasted her back through the wall of his office with the force of a genade. "Alice!" Carlos said as he mowed through a herd of Umbrella's goons to get to her. Wesker gagged & spit up blood as he fell to his knees, holding his head. He opened his mouth, as if to scream, but he could only manage a sputtering sound. "What the hell…?" Claire said as everyone looked on, Wesker was now having a full on seizing fit on the floor of his office, his skin began to boil away from his bones.

Carlos got to where Alice had landed in a heap against the wall, he felt his heart stop beating as he kneeled in front of her to find she had been impaled by a protruding shard of steel straight through her chest. "Oh… Alice…" He said, tears stung his eyes, she was incredible, an injury like that would have killed a normal person instantly, but even Alice's body had its limits. "C-Carlos…." She said breathlessly "Help me." She extended her hand to him & as gently as he could, he freed her. She let out a heart wrenching scream as she collapsed into his arms. "I … I don't think I'm going to make it, Carlos." She said, her voice barely a whisper as Carlos gently set her down on the table of one of the labs & frantically looked for something to quell the bleeding.

Suddenly, someone entered through the door & was greeted with the barrel of an AK forty-seven, the laser sight trained right between his eyes. "Whoa! Whoa! Its cool man, Wesker's dead, as far as I'm concerned, I work for myself now & besides, if you want to save your woman you're going to need me." The scientist said, Carlos dropped his rifle. For some reason he felt like he could trust this man. "The name's Dr. Jeremy Taylor He said as he walked to look over Alice, who only saw a man in a white coat & began to struggle. "Alice no! settle down! I won't let him hurt you, I promise." Carlos pleaded as he restrained her as gently as possible. "You're mutated, only someone with T- virus mutated DNA would have the strength nessessary to restrain Project Alice." Dr. Jeremy said. "Jeremy is it? If you want to live after today, I would stop referring to her like that." Carlos said, his dark eyes ablaze, The doctor nodded as he raised his hands defensively. "Fair enough." He said as he looked her over.

Claire & the others tied up the defeated Umbrella agents, after all they were only following the orders of their evil boss, too scared of him to question him, they all knew what happened to those who questioned Wesker. "We need to find Alice & Carlos." Claire said.

"Well….. ?" Carlos said, unable to keep the anxiety out of his tone, Jeremy examined Alice closely. "I can save her, but it will come at a price." I can inject a form of the antivirus, but it will negate her powers." "You mean she'll be… normal? Like a regular person?" Carlos said. "Yes….but…" "Do it." Came a voice from behind them, they turned to find Alice struggling to prop herself up on the exam table. "Ever since they did this to me, I've wanted to be normal, please, just do it." Jeremy nodded as he put the needle into her arm. In her cells, Alice felt a surge of power & her wounds began to heal, with newfound strength, she grabbed Jeremy by the front of his shirt. "I thought you said this was supposed to make me _normal_!" she said menacingly, Jeremy gasped for air, she was unintentionally choking him with his own shirt collar. "I-I don't know! It's having the opposite effect, but I don't know why! Please…! He said breathlessly as she released him, he collapsed to his knees, gasping for air. "I know why." Carlos said. "When we rescued you from the research facility after they milked you of all your blood, we thought you weren't going to make it. The reason you lived was because I….. used my abilities to heal you." He said in one quick breath. A fire raged in her steel blue eyes as she processed in what he was saying to her. "When I healed you, I put a little of MY version of the virus into you, therefore it must have mutated the strain that was already in your cells." "You knew?" She said as she stood up, her wounds now fully healed. Jeremy slinked into the corner, justifiably afraid because at her full strength, Alice was a force to be reckoned with for all but heavily armed personnel & those who were also mutated by the T-virus.

"Alice, please! Wait! You have to understand, I did it for YOU!" Carlos yelled as he followed Alice out of the facility & onto the decaying streets of whatever town they were in….. he didn't remember where they were anymore, not that it mattered anyway. Things like that stopped being important a long time ago. "For me… or for YOU." She replied venomously as she spun to face him. It would have been one thing if he had done it on impulse without knowing what they outcome would be, but he knew… he _knew_ & he still did it. She overheard Stella telling him about his ability to mutate & repair damaged cells in people & she warned him never to use it., mostly because it shortened his own life by a ten years every time he did it. Perhaps that's what angered her the most. That he would put himself on the line like that for someone … like _her_. "I have to leave." She said emotionlessly, Carlos felt his heart break. "But…. i have to know..." She trailed off, unable to keep the tears back any longer. "Why, why did you do it, Carlos?" "I know you hate being this way, not normal. It was a selfish act, I know. I couldn't live with the thought of living in this world without you in it. Even in those years you were gone, I knew you were out there somewhere & that kept me going, if you …. I don't think I could go on living." Carlos said, he took a deep breath he didn't realize he needed. All of his thoughts came out in one, long breath. "No, that's not what I meant. I heard Stella talking with you, I know that you shorten your life every time you heal someone & I didn't want you to….. waste it on me." She said tearfully. "I have to leave, because if something happens to me, you're going to do it again & I can't have that." She said as tears streamed down her face. She crouched on her haunches, like a leapord, broke into a run & in an instant, she was gone.


	6. Chapter 6

Chapter 6

**Disclaimer: Own nuthin', claim nuthin.**

In the months following Alice's departure from the Arcadia group she spent her time on the move, seemingly needless in this new world, _"old habits die hard"_ she thought to herself. She hadn't seen a living person since she left, she supposed that it was safe to assume that besides the few Umbrella workers, the Arcadia passengers & herself, there were no survivors. But what undead she met seemed more interested in giving her … hugs, that's right… hugs... the happy, human kind, must be a side effect of the viorus dying inside their bodies. causing them to regain some of their more human instincts before they died for real. Misunderstanding their intentions, she sliced & diced a few & looking back, she almost felt sorry doing it. Like mistakenly killing an animal. The 'cure' Umbrella gave the undead also shortened their 'life' & they began dropping like flies, those who had been mobile longest were the first to go. Oh well, ashes to ashes she thought as she bedded down under the inky sky, still unchanged through all of this. she preferred to take shelter during the day & do her traveling at night when it was cooler, but every once & a while she liked to bed down under the stars. She laid back against her sleeping bag & looked at the billions of stars twinkling back at her & her thoughts turned to Carlos, as they always did, no matter how she tried to fight it, he was always in the back of her conscious. She couldn't hide from herself the fact that she was in love with him any longer, & her heart & soul ached for him so much so that she sometimes wished she had never met him.

She still remembered that life changing moment like it was yesterday; him storming in with LJ in tow, the two of them drawing their weapons at each other, his laser sight pointed erotically at her chest, him with that sultry aroused look in his beautiful dark eyes. She had returned his expression with her own look of intrigue, both at the fact that he didn't even try to hide his feelings for her & at the way her own body was reacting to him, one look from him sent bolts of electricity down her extremities & to…. other places. She remembered feeling that again when they locked eyes after her escape from Detroit, she couldn't help but feel safe, her soul ached for that once more, but if you loved someone, you had to put their safety first. He knew that he loved her, which is why she couldn't be around him. She knew that he'd give up everything; even his own life to save hers & it wasn't fair. She sighed, even in this new world where they didn't have to worry about killing or being killed so much anymore, Umbrella was done, the company imploded on itself after Wesker's death, like an ant colony after the queen is poisoned. No more experiments, no more threat. What she didn't know was that Umbrella wasn't done with HER …. Yet.

She rocketed down the road on another commandeered motorcycle, a flashy red Kawasaki Ninja that was fast as hell, she loved zooming down the road doing almost 200 miles an hour. At those speeds everything, even time seemed to slow down. Suddenly she was forced to slam on the breaks so hard she almost launched herself over the handle bars, something was in her way, she pivoted the bike sideways as rubber melted into aging concrete & dust from the neglected road billowed around her like a smoke screen. "What the fuck…?" She cursed as she dismounted with her crossbow drawn. A black Lincoln town car sat, only feet where she had screeched to a halt. A man was leaning lazily against the driver's side door, a smug smile on his clean, shaven face. He was quite handsome, dressed in a nice black suit & his hair was neatly combed, Alice was immediately suspicious. He was quite out of the ordinary to see someone so well groomed this day & age….. unless they used to work for Umbrella. "You have thirty seconds to tell me who the hell you are & what the hell you want." She said as she aimed her crossbow at his forehead. "Okay, my name is Justin Stamos. I used to work for Umbrella. What I want…. Is to make you a proposition." "Oh, yeah?" Alice said, her crossbow steady. "Keep talking." "How'd you like to be the CEO of a new company?" Alice had to stifle a laugh. "Are you joking?" she said, her crossbow unwavering. "What do you have to lose? What is your future here in this world with nothing left to fight?" Justin said "Normal for a change, look I've fought my fight… Justin, is it? If you want a CEO you're going to have to look somewhere else, that's not my bag." She said as she turned & mounted her motorcycle. " "You're going to regret this, Alice." Justin said darkly as the smile faded from his face & his charm disappeared. "Yeah, I've heard that one before, I don't give a fuck." She replied coldly as she fired up her machine & rocketed away.

"Did you get her?" Justin shook his head negatively as he joined a group of six around a rectangular table, they all looked suddenly disappointed. "Shit!" one said as he brought his fist down onto the tabletop. "Look, with Wesker dead there is nothing or anyone powerful enough to force her to do what we want." One of them said. "So….. I guess we'll have to do this without her." Justin said as an evil smile spread across his handsome face. "Do we still have samples of the T virus?" "Yes but… most of our best scientists were killed in the last battle with the resistance movement." One of them said. "No matter. We'll start again, building this company from the ground up, we know the mistakes that were made last time, we are NOT going to have another Hive & we are NOT going to have another incident like the one in Raccoon City. We are going to operate in reconnaissance, behind the scenes. We are going to let this world repair itself as it may, in the mean time we will be working." Justin said.

_Author's note: Thanks for hanging in there with me, guys, I know I have gone a little OC & OT on this one, just bear with me, it'll be good…. Promise . Also thanks for all of the reviews… good & bad I want to know what you think! Every review helps me & inspires me. I know constructive criticism hurts but its good for me lol, writing is difficult for me, its tough for me to get my ideas from my head onto the page, it always has been. Which is why I do this, so I can strengthen that part of my brain… that & its fun . _


	7. Chapter 7

Chapter 7

_Author's note: I know this 'book' of a story is getting a little long in the chapter department, but this is a hard one for me to write & I couldn't hold myself to a chapter number limit at the time I wrote this, it would dampen the quality of the story. Anyway, enough babbling, lets get on with it. _

**Disclaimer: Oh….. & I own nothing :( sorry i havent been putting a disclaimer in my previous chapters but i know that I OWN NOTHING so if i forget, i said it here, okay?**

"Hey." Claire said as she joined Carlos under the dessert sky, most of the undead were gone, reduced to ashes, apparently the T virus also had had a preserving agent to it, slowing decay. When the virus was negated, it was assumed that all the years the undead were meant to be decaying caught up with them at once & they denigrated quickly. They had no choice but to leave the Arcadia, as they had finally depleted the supplies it had, besides there was no more threat from Umbrella or the undead so there was no need to hide any longer. "You can go, you know. Chris, Stella & I can handle things here. I know you want to look for her, everyone knows." She said with a smile. "I couldn't… the group…" "Look I'd be lying if I said that I wouldn't be sad to see you go. We are all going to miss you like hell, but I also know that you also have personal things you need to take care of." Claire I…" "Look, this is not up for negotiation, Olivera. "You… & Alice will always have a place here with us... _always_." He suddenly leaned forward & hugged her. "Your welcome." Claire said as she embraced him warmly. Over the years, Carlos had become like a second brother to her, & she had to set him free, give him that little push. He needed to know that it was okay to put himself first for a change after countless years of putting others first. "I know its not your nature to put yourself first but, believe me if your unhappy its almost impossible to make someone else happy. "Thanks, Claire. We will back, I promise." He said with a smile.

Alice awoke from another restful night's sleep, well…. Night as far as she was concerned, it was actually just becoming night, but she preferred to travel at night, in the dessert, it was much more comfortable, even on a vehicle having cool air in ones face was a hell of a lot better than hot air. Although the virus had been easily eradicated within its human hosts, the earth itself was not so lucky & had proven slow to recover. Most of the North American continent remained a dessert, she snaked her way around the bodies of the once undead. She both loved & loathed being on her own & while she wouldn't admit it to anyone but herself, she missed the convoy & … Carlos….. just the thought of him sent a stab of pain through her heart. As she zoomed down the empty she had a moment of self pity, something she rarely allowed herself because she saw it as a weakness but she couldn't help but felt that after everything that has happened, it was unfair that after all they had been through, that they couldn't be together, she felt they deserved at least that. Tears streamed down her face as she traveled.

Claire & the Convoy chose a nice hilltop cave in the desserts of New Mexico where they had a vantage point of the surrounding area, not that it was necessary to do so anymore, but as anyone will tell you, old habits die hard & with the remnants of Umbrella crawling around, one could never be too careful. "Hey!" Stella said from her vantage point, through her binoculars she could see the dark form of someone approaching. "Who the hell travels at night? " Claire said "Who ever he is, he's heading right for us." Stella replied as Claire & Chris took up aim at the figure but they could no longer find him. "Where the hell did he go?" Chris said as he strained to see through his scope, even with the aid of night vision, whoever it was had simply vanished. "Maybe they didn't see us, maybe they're heading for the lower caves to bed down for the night…" Stella didn't have a chance to finish her sentence, because just then, a figure vaulted over the edge of the cliff & landed lightly in the entrance to the cave with barely any sound at all. They were backlit against the light of the full moon, they all raised their weapons, ready for anything.

_Cliffhanger! i know im horrible, please R & R, reviews are like sugar highs for my fingers, they give them the energy to type :), no really, in all seriousness, thanks guys :)_


	8. Chapter 8

Chapter 8

**Disclaimer: Nope, don't own nuthin' **

The two sides entered a tense standoff, neither seemingly willing to make the first move, suddenly, the stranger gave a chuckle as they removed their headgear. "Claire, you bitch, its me." Alice said as she stepped into the light, Claire, K mart, Stella & the others rushed forward & embraced her in a group hug. "Your too late though, he's already gone." Stella said with a smile, Alice attempted to feign indifference. "Oh, come off it, Alice. We all know you two are like…. Crazy in love with each other, why else would you come back?" she added. "Actually I was also hoping we could talk." Alice said, Stella motioned for them to sit off from the other's excited chatter. "What about?" "Me & Carlos." Alice said. "I meant about what happened to us, what he did to me." Alice said flatly, noticing Stella's raised eyebrow. "Oh… yeah… of course. Okay; that dog of yours had abilities that he passed onto Carlos when he melted his DNA into his, sacrificing his own life in the process of course. One of those abilities was to … pass on his abilities, the reason why it killed your doggy friend is because transference of abilities takes ten years off one's life each time it's used & since dogs don't have the lifespan of a human, it ended his." Stella explained, Alice felt a pang of sadness for her canine friend, he had given his life to save Carlos' & he did it for her. What was it that she said, that people have a habit of dying around her? _"I guess it's not just people."_ She thought grimly. _"Take care of him, boy." _Tears stung her eyes as she recalled her last words to him, she didn't think it would entail him making the ultimate sacrifice. "But you don't have to worry about that, your immortal, no aging, no injuries, no….. Dying. That was one of the gifts Carlos gave you when he healed you. You should be thanking him, if he hadn't you would've died. Those monster scientists took too much of your mutated blood, not leaving enough of the virus in your system for you to regenerate, if Carlos hadn't done what he did, you wouldn't have lasted the night… just saying." Stella said, Alice stood. "Where is he?" "He left… looking for you." Claire said from behind her & then she smiled. "Well, what are you waiting for? Get the hell out of here." She said, lightly, a smile playing on her face. "Yeah & when you find him, tell him hi for us." Chris chimed in, Alice merely shook her head & smiled in response as she disappeared from sight, K mart & the others hurried forward, trying to catch a glimpse of her retreating form but she was already gone. "That woman's like fucking Batman!" Chris exclaimed & everyone had a laugh.

"How is it coming?" Justin said as he peered over the scientists shoulders. "We had problems getting the DNA to stabilize… as in mutate with predictability." One of them said. "We only found one animal that was able to handle the virus." He said as he motioned for Justin to follow him. "A komodo dragon?" He asked questioningly, the scientist shrugged. "We couldn't get any of the mammals to accept the virus but we had more luck with the reptiles for some reason." "They don't look any different." Justin commented, the scientist smiled evily. "They will soon." He said as an unsuspecting rabbit was unceremoniously shoved into the dragon's cage. "Once they ingest fresh DNA they will mutate into a stronger faster hunter." "But can we control them?" Justin asked again, with urgency. "That's the easy part." The second scientist replied.

As Alice sped down the still deserted highway, even though the threat of undead was no more, the world still had a dismal, apocalyptic feel to it. When she had the chance, she would take a glimpse she could see no more than a barren, lifeless shell of its former self & she suspected that it would take many, many years to recover, if it did at all. She highly doubted that it would. Suddenly she had the feeling that she was being followed, she released the throttle & wheeled the bike around in a cloud of smoke, creating a perfect doughnut on the decaying asphalt, she drew her long colts & waited. Sure enough, the faint sound of an engine could be heard, slowly growing louder as it approached. It was another motorcycle. "Shit, you sure drive fast, thought this old hog wasn't going to be able to keep up, guess I should have stolen something a little… faster." The person said as they pulled off their helmet, Alice was met by the sight of a man in his mid-thirties with longish sandy blonde hair that he brushed away from his face. "Take one more step & I'll blow your fucking head off." Alice said, her voice low, cold & calculating, the man raised his hands into the air, the playful grin never leaving his handsome face. He had weapons but it seemed that he had no desire to use them. "You were trying to catch up to me, what do you want?" Alice repeated. "Hey I just saw another person & got a little too… excited, it's been, hell I can't even remember how long its been since I've seen another living person. I was beginning to think I was the only one til I saw your tail lights." He said; he was being sincere, Alice could tell & she twirled her weapons around & holstered them in one fluid motion. "Oh, I'm sorry, where are my manners, name's Leon Scott Kennedy." He said as he held out his hand, "Alice." Alice said simply as she accepted it, she had to admit, it would be nice not to travel alone for a change, & it was a plus that her new companion was easy on the eyes. "Just try to keep up." Alice said with a smirk as she mounted her bike & sped off, Leon smiled as he followed suit.

Carlos awoke with a start from a series of vivid dreams, some filled of fragments of the events in Raccoon, then flashes of LJ biting him, then the truck over turning. Rotting heads, arms & bodies reaching in through the window, Bozz sinking his teeth into his arm & dragging him into the hole he dug. Then Alice… god she was beautiful, flashes of her face, her in combat, she was like an elegant machine, like watching a Lamborghini cruise down the highway doing one eighty five. He had to find her, & he would crisscross this god forsaken planet if he had to, he would have given anything if that dog had bestowed on him the ability to since others with mutated DNA. It stopped his line of thought & chastised himself, he _should_ be grateful to be _alive_ but that's human nature isn't it? always wanting more. "Sir, the first specimens are ready." One of the scientists said as they stood in front of a series of tanks that looked much like the ones used to house the lickers long ago. They were dated, yes, but they were still very useful. "Good, deploy them." Justin said.

Carlos slammed on his brakes, his hummer sliding to a stop in the middle of the road somewhere in the mid-west, the scream of rubber melding with asphalt echoed through the lifeless dessert. Someone was flagging him down, make that two someone's; two young girls that didn't look much older than K-mart was when they had found her all those years ago. "Oh, thank god! You're the first person we have seen since all those… things started dying off. We've been walking this road, hoping someone would come along. My name is Miranda, this is my sister, Michelle." The older of the two girls, barely eighteen herself if she was lucky said as she hopped into his truck. People did that a lot in the years after the world as they knew it ended, jumped into vehicles of people they didn't know from Adam. _'Guess the death of the world changes people's priorities.'_ Carlos thought as he put the hummer into drive. "So, whats your story?" Miranda asked. "I'm a Raccoon City survivor." "I heard that place was nuked, how'd you get out?" Miranda replied, Carlos' hands tightened around the steering wheel. "It's a long story." "It not like we're going to get anywhere any time soon." Carlos sighed & launched into the story, when he had finished, he had a chuckle at the girls' expressions, they were practically on the edge of their seats. "Wow… so you're like… a super hero! & you know Alice!" Miranda exclaimed excitedly, "How do _you_ know her?" He quipped. "Oh everyone knows _her_ she's like totally a legend." She said with a grin. "We met her you know, she's the reason we're alive. Back before all those… things died, a hoard of them attacked the restaurant our family was held up in, that's why Michelle doesn't talk, she hasn't said a word since … we lost our parents." She said as she wiped tears away from her face, Carlos suddenly felt a surge of anger rising within him, like a volcano erupting. They were too young to have seen so much death, they reminded him of Kmart, they should be in school & spending their Friday nights at the movies & their weekends tweeting their friends about the latest Twilight movie, not walking along a crumbling highway thumbing for a ride to who knows where. Carlos felt relief he had come across them & not some nut job, yes there were still those kinds of people, even in a dead world.

Before the night came he had picked up three more survivors, a man named Brent & his son, Kyle & a young teenage boy about Michelle's age who called himself Zero, all were the few survivors of a convoy. After hours of driving without seeing anything, the dessert had taken most of the structures, but a few remained & they came upon what was once an upscale suburban neighborhood, the streets were lined with the remains of mansions, most constructed out of brick or stone. "What about that one!" Miranda said as they drove by a house that once had a charming fountain & courtyard out front, at once time it must've been very beautiful. What Carlos liked most about it was the fact that it had a ten foot wall around it with the only entrance being through the driveway's heavy iron gate which of course had once been automatic & no longer functioned, so that meant they were going to have to scale the wall. Carlos boosted everyone else over & followed behind, leaping over the wall with all the grace of a leopard. "I hope there's food inside, I'm starving." Zero said as he made his way to what was once the kitchen, the others followed suit. Most of the stuff had long since gone bad & they were downcast, however Miranda happened upon a large decaying binder in one of the drawers. "What good is that? You cant eat it." Zero said, Miranda shot him a condescending look as she turned to Carlos. "I wonder of this place has a basement?" "Awww fucking 'A'!" Zero said as they found the basement had been converted into a giant pantry, which was fully stocked with goods everyone else must have overlooked when they came looking to loot. "Extreme couponers." Miranda said with a smirk as she showed Carlos the binder, filled with dusty pages of coupons. There was enough food there to last them a good couple of months & without the risk of undead finding them they could afford to stay a while, Carlos felt he at least owed them that.

"So who is this Carlos guy & why are we trying to find him again?" "Correction _I'm _trying to find him, you're just along for the ride." Alice corrected him, Leon raised his hands in defeat. "Fair enough, you don't have to answer that." "He's like me, you know, genetically altered." Alice said, her gaze fixed on the fire. "Look, just say it, you want to find him because you love him." Her eyes flashed for a second, he wasn't sure if it was just light play from the fire or not. "Hey don't worry, I'm not going to bust your ass about it, I think its great, you're a lucky woman. At least you know the person you love is still alive. I know the person I loved isn't." He said sadly. "Jill Valentine." Alice interjected. "Sorry, your thoughts just now were just so loud I couldn't help hearing them. I knew her, you know. She helped me & Angie escape Raccoon City, she was a brave person." They both fell silent in wake of their own memories of Jill, Alice was shocked to find that she was dead, she figured Jill as the ultimate survivor, hell she would have bet money (that was if there was still such a thing) on Jill outlasting her, super powers or not. "I suggest we try to get some sleep, we have a long day of road-eating tomorrow, we only have about five hundred miles to go & I want to make as much of a dent in that as I can."

Carlos & the others were rudely jolted out of a peaceful sleep by a tremendous crash & the sound of metal being twisted & broken. They all crowded to the nearest upstairs window & were horrified to see a huge, grotesque looking lizard creature it was the size of a seven forty seven not including the long, whip-like tail, it opened its mouth wide & let out a roar, displaying four rows of six foot long dagger-like teeth, dripping with poison." "Holy shit!" Zero said as he fainted, Michelle rolled her eyes as she snatched the gun from him. "So… who wants to go first?"


	9. Chapter 9

Chapter 9

**Disclaimer: you know, the usual no owning, no claiming that I own…etc**

_A/N: Hey all, I know its been like forever since I updated & I thank you guys who put me in their favorites list & I thank you for being so patient. Work has been like… crazy busy lately (breaking yearling horses is tough LMBO) so usually I am too bushed to write at the end of the day but I had the day off today so I hope to get some update done & such. Also, I know in my past stories there aren't any page breaks for changes of scenery… etc, sorry about that, my word program is double spaced so I forget to add that extra space LOL, I'll try to remember to hit enter twice._

Images flashed through Alice's mind, a huge creature with horrible gnashing teeth, shouts, gunfire & screams. She glimpsed a once beautiful mansion now in ruin in the former Hollywood hills. _"Everyone get to the back!" _A familiar, commanding voice pierced through all the commotion, it was Carlos' she couldn't see him, but she knew that voice anywhere. "Hey… Alice… ALICE!" She found herself being shaken rudely awake, she shot bolt upright, sending poor Leon flying back about fifty feet with a burst of psionic power. "What the hell…!" he said indignantly as she mounted her bike & fired it up. "Hey…! Wait for me!" He added as she sped off in a cloud of dust & burning rubber, he hurriedly followed her cloud of dust, shaking his head accosted, so much for apologies.

"All right, you ugly bastard." Carlos said to the creature whipped around to face him. "Carlos…!" Michelle yelled as she opened the front door. "Stay inside!" He yelled as she tossed him her weapon, an AK- forty seven she had been hiding from the rest of the group & an extra magazine. Carlos emptied half of the first clip into the monster with no effect, a vicious lash of the tail caught him in the gut & sent him flying to land in a heap at the base of the house's property wall. Suddenly, something cleared the wall above him, another creature? No it was a bike, the rider was off with all the grace of a tiger before the machine even came to a stop, they were running toward the monster, drawing a pair of long swords as they ran, their speed so fast that they became a blur. Carlos grinned through the pain of his broken bones in spite of himself, only one person could move like that. Then, his heart came to reside in his feet as a sick feeling rose in his throat, Alice had allowed herself to be swallowed by the monster. His fears were short lived, because suddenly the creature burst into thousands of chunks as blood & entrails flew in every direction, splattering the side of the house & breaking a few of the remaining windows. "Alice…!" Carlos choked out as he struggled to his feet, judging by the pain he had broken at least three or four ribs & his collar bone, Alice pulled off her helmet & tossed it aside as she strode quickly towards him, her ice blue eyes flashing _"oh, shit."_ He got a sudden dreaded feeling that she had spared him from the monster just so she could kill him herself. "Alice I…" He began but he didn't get a chance to finish because upon reaching him, Alice grabbed the front of his jacket & pulled him into a passionate kiss. Passion quickly overtook them as the torches they held for each other came together to form an inferno & they had half ass undressed each other in a matter of minutes, Michelle grinned as she backed away from the window, giving them their privacy & making sure everyone else did too by ordering them into the basement, that's where all the food was anyway, plus the other half of it had once been a stylish game room. "Too bad there's no electricity, we could play air hockey." Zero said. "Lucky for you because I would've kicked your ass." Michelle said.

Alice knew she should stop, Carlos was hurt, she could tell, he had broken a few ribs & fractured his collarbone in a few places. "Carlos… maybe we shouldn't…" She said as she made to get off him but he pulled her back down. "Where do you think you're going?" He growled, not bothering to hide the arousal in his voice. That voice… just hearing it sent waves of electricity through her body, who was she kidding? She had no will power when it came to this man, ever since their first meeting all those years ago in Raccoon. The second they pointed their guns at one another, the flame was ignited. Which is why she had tried to distance herself, she thought she was protecting him, & anyone else with him, Carlos had always had a strange magnetism for people in need of help; Oh well hindsight is twenty twenty. She was brought back to reality as in one smooth motion, Carlos has maneuvered her so that he was atop. "Well? Are you just going to stare at me all night or what?" She quipped, he flashed her a dashing grin as he brought his mouth down onto hers.

"Are the other specimens ready?" Justin asked. "Just waiting for your call." "Do it, deploy them all." Justin said excitedly. "We'll see how she likes _this_ shit."

Alice awoke to sounds from downstairs. She had always been a light sleeper & the T virus has exacerbated that due to a heightened sense of hearing that was close to a dog's. _'No wonder dog's were such light sleepers.' _She thought as she made her way downstairs to find Carlos shuffling around, trying as best as he could not to show just how much pain he was in, she knew that pain. The T virus accelerated the healing of broken bones, but at a price; it was very painful, it made a person feel like their body was full of large splinters. "We have to find the others." Carlos said, grimacing as he packed the groups things together. "Carlos, You're in no condition for walking around much less traveling." Alice said as she seated him on the couch. "Look, I feel it too, something is going to happen. If it will make you feel any better I'll go & find the convoy & being them back here." "You going out alone? No it really doesn't make me feel any better, but what choice do I have? Its clear your not going to let me travel." Alice smiled. "Your right & don't even think of pulling a fast one, because I will know." She said as she stood tall to face him, her eyes flashing for a moment & for that moment Carlos saw what Alice's enemies saw before she killed them & he smiled in spite of himself. "Ok, you win, I'll be a good boy." He said with a wink.

A pair or eyes snap open, we see his point of view, he finds himself looking through the iron bars of a cage in the bowels of the Japanese Umbrella facility, which is now once again, fully operational. He crawled to the front of his enclosure & strained to see his surroundings & was shocked to see hundreds of animals of all species in cages. _'what the fuck…?' _ he tried to say but nothing would come out, the only voice he could hear was in his head. He tried again to speak but the only thing that would come out was this horrible howling noise. _'Still haven't figured it out yet?' _A voice came into his head, he looked through the bars to see a tiger staring back at him, his green eyes unblinking. _'D-did you just… how in the fuck…?' _ _'its telekinesis, it's the way we have to communicate now, those bastard scientists robbed us of our ability to speak, this is all we have left.' _ _'But… your animals… what happened to me?' _The tiger chuckled inwardly, as did some of the other animals. _'Look at yourself, son.' _The tiger said, he did as he was told & looked at his hands, but they weren't hands… they were paws. _'what the…?' 'You died in the hive, right? So did we. Umbrella had stores of our DNA & they made clones of us, & transplanted them into animal embryos & here we are' _The tiger said, his thoughts melodramatic. _'My name was Lisa, Lisa Addison.' _A barn owl said from the corner of the room. _'Matt Addison's sister?' 'Y-yes.' _she said, even the pain in her thoughts was evident. _'I knew him, Alice too. We were in the hive together, they made it out, I didn't.' _ he said sadly as he stood. _'I don't know about you guys, but I'm not going to sit around & wait to see what they are going to do to us…' _ he said as he stepped back from his cage door & began to put all his thought towards breaking the lock.


	10. Chapter 10

Chapter 10

**Disclaimer: no owning no claiming that I own etc…**

Carlos' eyes snapped open as he sat bolt upright, but he immediately regretted this decision as pain from his injuries shot through his entire body. "Whoa, whoa! Easy dude!" Miranda said as she gently restrained him. "Alice…!" "Is sleeping in the next room, you know that using her psionic powers takes a lot out of her." She said, he nodded & relaxed. "Don't worry, she wasn't going to leave without seeing you first… if that's what you were thinking." Miranda said with a smile as Alice walked in, roused by their conversation. "Hey." She said, rubbing her eyes like a sleepy teenager. Carlos grinned in spite of himself as he painfully sat up to greet her. "You know I gotta go." "I know." Carlos said, his expression downcast. He hated the idea of her leaving him but they had obligations to their friends. Besides, Alice could find them easier due to her ability to hone in on anyone or anything infected with the virus.

"Can't sleep?" Stella said to the dark cave behind her, her eyes not leaving the dying campfire. The convoy had set up what could be considered a homestead in the network of caverns in the mountains; they were warm at night, when the temperature dipped & cool during the heat of the day. Kmart didn't bother to ask how she knew she was there, "nope, you?" She replied as she sat beside her on the ground. "Something is coming." Stella said, Kmart struggled to see out into the inky night to no avail, it was like trying to look through a blacked out window on a car. Even the light from their campfire & their torches wasn't enough to penetrate it. "Something? What kind of something?" "I don't know, I just have this horrible feeling, like… I don't know… I cant explain it." Stella said.

Suddenly, she lurched forward, grabbed Kmart & carried her to the back of the cave in one leap just as something large landed right in the middle of their dying campfire, the creature's breath extinguishing what was left of the embers. The torchlight from the cavern behind them was the only light now. As their eyes adjusted, the saw that it wasn't an animal, but a motorcycle, Stella drew her dessert eagle & kept Kmart behind her as the rider dismounted & removed their goggles & scarf. "Alice? Son of a bitch! You've got to stop doing that!" Stella said as Kmart rushed forward & embraced her as Claire & the rest of the convoy, awakened by the commotion rushed in with their weapons drawn. "What can I say? I like to make an entrance." Alice said as her expression turned serious. "You guys have to pack up & come with me, now. No questions, just do it." She said as Kmart opened her mouth to speak, Claire on the other hand knew Alice well enough by this time to know that she usually knew best.

Back at the lab, there was a crashing sound. _'I did it!' _he said as he cautiously walked through the door of hoe wrecked cage. _'Let me try it on your cages too!' _he said as he approached the tiger, somewhere outside, an alarm sounded. _'there is no time! Quick, through the trash chute!' _The tiger said, he hesitated for a moment, shouting could be heard, footsteps were getting louder, closer. '_GO!'_ the tiger shouted, he had no choice, with a pained look he leapt through the door & endured a long, rough ride to the dumpster below which, to his horror was filled with Umbrella's rejected… experiments. He scrambled out of the dumpster as fast as he could, shaking the blood & various bodily fluids off his body. He had an urge to go west, toward the United States, he didn't know how he was going to get there, but he knew he had to.

"Everyone ready?" Alice said as she straddled her motorcycle, her goggles resting above her eyes, her scarf around her neck. Claire gave the thumbs-up, Alice nodded & kicked started her bike & they all pulled out under the cover of the inky, moonless night. Not even thirty minutes after they left, visitors arrived at their former home, they blasted apart the rock face, exposing the network of caverns inside. One creature looked at the other, something seemed to be said between the two & they nodded in agreement as they took flight.

He didn't know how he did it, but he managed to make it to the shipping yard… but in this day & age there weren't many ships sailing out… not any that he would want to be on anyway. _'I guess I'll have to find my own ride, because I'm not swimming to the US.' _He said as he scoured the deserted dock, he needed something with a motor, because he didn't think he could row with this new body of his but, as luck would have it, he found one. It wasn't fancy, but it would have to do. He turned the key with his mouth & pushed the shift to idle, as soon as he was out of the harbor he pushed the motor to full.

"They're here!" Miranda said excitedly as they all ran down stairs, Carlos rose stiffly & followed behind. His injuries had heeled but his bones were still achy. "Carlos!" Kmart said as she embraced him. "Easy on the old man, kid." He said with a smile as she released him, Alice couldn't ignore the twinge of jealousy she felt in her gut as Carlos & Claire shared a warm embrace. She couldn't shake the feeling that there was something between them on Claire's end, she felt it the moment she had joined their convoy all those years ago in the middle of the Nevada dessert. Alice slipped out of the sweetness fest, she always felt like an outcast, she walked towards the balcony, her job done, the group was reunited once more & everyone was safe, she suddenly felt the presence of someone. She drew her long colts, ever present at her side, like two old & trusted friends & headed down stairs. Her sharp ears picked up rustling outside. "No use hiding, you're cover's blown… Kennedy." She said with a smile. "How'd you know it was me?" he said as he stepped out of the shadows. "My powers effect my sense of smell too, you know." Alice quipped. "Very funny." He said flatly as he followed her inside. "Lucky for you they have running water in here so you can shower… or should I say lucky for everyone _else._" She continued, he chose to ignore her. "Leon!" Carlos said as he, Leon & Chris embraced like brothers.

"You ok?" Stella said as she joined Alice outside for a cigarette, Alice was already on her third one. "Just not a fan of the whole mushy love scene." "Are you sure its not something else? I saw the way you bore a hole into the back of Claire's head when she was giving your man a hug. Your lucky you have a handle on your psionic powers now or you might have." Stella said with a smile. "So I was that obvious, huh?" She snorted as she blew the drag from her cigarette out of her nose into the night. "Don't feel bad, I think that everyone was too into their love-fest to notice." Stella said with a laugh as she lit a cigarette & took a long drag. "I'm not too keen on the mushy stuff either, besides I don't have the relationship with the group, on the other hand they've been through hell together, that bonds people." She said as she twirled her cigarette in her hand, studying it nonchalantly. "But you have nothing to worry about, Carlos is like… crazy in love with you, he was beside himself when you left. Drove us all crazy, so Claire sent him out to find you." Alice smiled silently, suddenly, a figure leapt onto the balcony, causing Stella & Alice to draw their weapons & fire in one smooth motion, as though the whole scene was cerography. The creature deflected their bullets with its own psionic powers. _'Please, I mean you no harm… Alice.' _The creature said as he stepped out of the shadows, Alice & Stella exchanged the same confused look.

_A/N-I know this might get a little hard to follow for some, but I'll do my best to keep the flow. I also have been trying to use more paragraph breaks to make it an easier to read. Remember, please R&R thanks._


	11. Chapter 11

Chapter 11

**Disclaimer: I no own :/**

_A/N: Thanks for sticking with me through this one guys, I know its been a weird journey so far LOL._

It was a dog, a Belgian Malinois to be exact, still, Alice couldn't shake the feeling that she knew him from somewhere, there was an urgency in his dark, masked face that made her uncomfortable. _'Alice its ME Chad, Chad Kaplan. Don't you remember me?' _ A voice said in her head, it had a desperate undertone. Instinctively she knew it came from the dog, & even telepathically his voice was still the same. Alice dropped her pistols to the ground in shock. "K-Kaplan?" She said, her words coming out slowly, carefully as she knelt down in front of him & took his head in her hands, through his eyes, even though they were now a dog's eyes, she could see his soul, his essence. She knew it was him. "Oh, Kaplan, I'm so sorry." She said softly as she hugged him. Suddenly, the click of a weapon was heard & Alice wheeled around to find Carlos pointing his assault rifle at the canine, his laser sight had him dead straight between the eyes. "No!" Alice said as she put herself between the gun & Kaplan, the laser now fixated on her chest. Much as it had been that fateful night she & Carlos had met. Sparks of passion flew in Carlos' dark eyes & she knew he was recalling the same memory. "Common, Kaplan, if you're going to stay, I have some explaining to do." Alice said as she held the balcony door open for him.

"_Kaplan_? Holy shit, dude!" Leon said as he studied the dog closely, Kaplan snapped at him with his pearly teeth. _'Watch it, Kennedy, I might not be human anymore, but I can still kick your ugly ass.'_ Alice snorted, Chris laughed. "Same old Kaplan." He said as he gave him a pat on the back. _'its not just me. There are others back at the facility in Japan, other animals like me.' _"Who are they?" Alice asked. _'All the people who died in the initial accident at the Hive, plus the ones we lost.' _Kaplan said as he averted his eyes. _'they cloned our DNA & somehow implanted it into animals … I don't know how, I'm not a scientist.' _He said with a shrug. "Through gene splicing, when I left the company it was still in its infancy, we were having trouble stabilizing the cells & they always self-destructed. _'Oh they still do, to escape I had to take a dive down the trash chute & I'll just say it wasn't pretty, I guess some species & some animals… take it better then others.' _Kaplan said. "We have to rescue them, who knows what those bastards will do to them." Stella said.

"Wait a minute… we are safe here, Wesker is dead which means Umbrella is no more, we can build a life." Carlos said. "Do you really believe that?" Alice retorted from her spot on the couch next to Kaplan. "As long as members of that organization exist there is a threat, how in the fuck else would you explain that monster that came here?" She said. "I didn't say anything before but when I was on my own I was… approached… by a man by the name of Justin who worked for Umbrella under Wesker. He spilled me a load of bullshit about creating a 'new Umbrella' & they wanted me to… run it. I of course refused, I know that wanted me for my power, what I could do under their power, their… _control_. By asking me directly they were trying to throw me off & trick me into agreement & it almost worked, for a moment because I had this crazy idea to destroy the company from the inside, but I dismissed it & said no… so I supposed they are probably pissed at me." Alice said. "Umbrella approached you?" Claire said, her brow furrowing. "Yeah." Alice replied curtly. "But don't worry, like I said, I turned them down. I prefer to work free-lance." She said with a wink at Kaplan, who gave an expression that suggested had he been human, he would have blushed. Carlos' insides twisted with jealousy in spite of himself; rationally he knew it was stupid, being jealous of a dog even if he had once been a human… a womanizing one at that. He laughed inwardly at the irony of the fact that he was now literally… a dog. _'so, what's the plan, then?' _Kaplan said. "To wait for their next move, til then, we sit tight & let them come to us." She said, her eyes flashing, after many years in this game of cat & mouse with Umbrella, she learned to be patient, because as she learned the hard way, petulance will get a person killed. "What if they don't?" Zero said. "They will." Claire interjected with finality.

Kmart jolted from a dreamless sleep, she sat bolt upright in a momentary state of panic. She squinted into the pitch black of the abandoned house. She never would admit it to anyone but she had at one time, been afraid if the dark, but the end of the world & electricity forced her to get over it for the most part, though every once & a while, it would still startle her if she awoke suddenly. She had the strange feeling she wasn't alone. _'Can't sleep?' _She smiled. "Hi, Kaplan. No suddenly I feel wide awake." _'Same here.' _He said as he joined her on the couch. _'You think you have it hard, try being a DOG. My hearing is like… ten times more sensitive than yours often times I can hear the cockroaches moving in the plumbing, simple things like that people don't even think about are like the drone of a seven forty seven to me.' _Kmart laughed, suddenly, Kaplan jumped off the couch, a low growl escaping him. "What?" Kmart said just as Alice appeared so suddenly that she startled them both. "Geeze, Alice! You've gotta stop doing that!" Kmart said as she patted her chest in an effort to return her heart to its normal rhythm. "I heard something, something is coming." _'Something big.' _ Kaplan said as a huge crash was heard outside. "What in the hell was that?" Stella said as she & the others joined them, all roused by the noise. "I think we have company, lets show them a big welcome, shall we?" Leon said as he readied his AK forty seven. 


	12. Chapter 12

**Chapter 12**

**Disclaimer: I no own :/**

"Holy shit!" Claire said as they looked upon two enormous winged creatures that had just landed in the courtyard, smashing the once beautiful fountain beneath their massive weight. "Hey!" She yelled, both creatures whirled around, & their mouths opened wide revealing rows of glistening, poisonous fangs. They look like some kind of Frankenstein splice between a cobra & a dragon, the first creature splayed its hood & gave Alice a mighty roar, forcing her to shield her face against the onslaught of saliva. "Say it, don't spray it." She said as she drew her twin kukris, her two favorite weapons, her two oldest & most trusted friends. They glistened in the moonlight, she did a hell of a job maintaining them, polishing & sharpening them after every use. "Who's first?" She said as she twirled them nonchalantly; the second one reared back & lashed its long, whip like tail at her, the creatures were surprisingly fast, even surprising Alice, who only just dodged. "Alice!" Carlos yelled, just then a blur whizzed past him through the window to his left.

"Stella… what are you doing?" He said. "The rest of you just stay there & protect the others!" She said as she landed lightly to Alice's left, who smiled. "Welcome to the party." "Come on, lets waste these assholes." Stella said as she took out a couple of explosive charges & took a run at monster number one, as the creature struck, its mouth opened wide enough to swallow her & ended up swallowing the charges instead. The creature's eyes widened in something that could only be explained as _'oh shit'_ as the charges detonated, blowing its mouth apart. Deadly, poisonous fangs shot like daggers in every direction. Stella felt a searing pain just above her collarbone as she landed heavily on her haunches, she reached & pulled one lone poisonous fang out of her flesh "shit!" she cursed, her surging adrenaline temporarily dulling the effects of the poison, Alice finished the job by slicing the monster's head off; one down, one to go. Alice made quick work of this one with her twin kukris; she did her best to shield herself against the tidal wave of entrails that spilled from the creature as it keeled over dead. As it did, Stella also collapsed.

"Stella _please_… let me heal you!" Carlos pleaded desperately as Alice gently laid her onto the couch. "No! you mustn't! What's happened has happened, you have to let it be." She said as Alice knelt beside her. "I think I can help with this." She said as she made to put her hand on Stella's wound, Stella stopped her. "What are you doing?" "Giving you my immortality… I don't want it anyway. Not in a world like this." "NO! you must not give that up… especially that… not now." Stella said as the grimaced in pain, she could feel the poison spreading through her tissues, her cells, through her very being. She knew she didn't have much time left. The others gathered around to say their last goodbyes, Alice was in the front doing her best to wear a brave face for her dying friend. "C-Carlos… Alice… you have to promise me something… that you wont use those abilities … not until the time is right. Please… just promise …" She trailed off in a grimace of pain. "It's ok, Stella, just save your strength, Stella smiled & gave a coughing laugh." "Save it… for what? If I'm going, might as well go on out on a funny note…" She said in an attempt at a joke as her life left her & she went limp, Kmart burst into tears & was led away by Miranda, Zero & Michelle. Through tearful vision, Carlos gently closed her eyelids.

There wasn't a dry eye in the group as they stood in front of a fresh mound of earth in the courtyard under the cherry blossom tree, at the head of Stella's grave was a makeshift wooden cross, everyone in the group had crafted something to hang on it & the display it warranted was quite beautiful & touching. Alice was the last to hang hers, with tears streaming unfamiliarly down her beautiful face, the feeling of them was alien to her but at the same time strangely reassuring, a vindicate to the fact that she was still somewhat human. She stepped forward, uncharacteristically awkward, clutching a wreath made from her precious quarters she so obsessively collected & encrusted with various jewels she lifted from the mansion's former owners. She placed it over the top of the cross & stepped back into the folds of the group, crying silently, Carlos tried to keep a visual on her but she was swallowed by the mass of grieving souls. He was immediately worried, Alice had a history of doing stupid things when she was hurting. There was no official ceremony, everyone content to grieve silently, comforted by the person standing next to them as a single entity, one large adopted family.

Once it was over & they all slowly filed back inside, Carlos took stock that Alice was nowhere to be found & his heart skipped a couple of panicked beats, he rushed frantically outside & a wave of relief washed over him, where she was, kneeling in front of Stella's grave. He drew closer, & she stood, still not facing him. Carlos opened his mouth to speak but stopped himself, he couldn't think of anything to say that would make her feel any better, he knew she & Stella had been close, its like those infected with the virus were drawn to one another, like moths to a flame. His train of thought was broken as Alice faced him, her eyes red & puffy from crying, tear stains ran deep tracks down her cheeks, bathed in the ghostly light of the moon, she looked so raw so, vulnerable. Her eyes were an empty grey color, Carlos opened his mouth to speak but was again silenced as she fell into him, her arms wrapping him in a desperate embrace, her body once again shaking with grief. "I wish I could tell you that its going to be ok, Alice, but I can't; all I can offer is… my support." He said finally as he buried his face in her hair, trying to lose himself in her essence. Her sobs subsided as she wrapped her arms tighter around him, trying to lose herself in him. Carlos was glad for the powers the virus gave him, because had he been a true human, she would have re-broken several of his ribs with her crushing embrace; years of living with mutated DNA & Alice still didn't truly know her own strength. He silently stroked her hair. They stayed like that for what seemed like a fortnight, until Carlos finally broke the embrace & made her look at him. "It's getting cold, lets go inside, ok?" He said gently, she said nothing but allowed herself to be led back to the mansion.

Everyone else was asleep by this time, exhausted from the ordeal. Carlos & Alice crept by them, to one of the bedrooms at the end of the hall, he helped Alice onto the tall four poster bed & made to leave, but Alice's strong grip on his arm halted him "Please… stay." She said, her eyes pleading, painful. He gave her a reassuring smile as he climbed in beside her & wrapped her in a spooning embrace, he smiled as he felt her muscles relax, years of tension & stress washing away, he couldn't take away her pain but at least he could give her security & comfort; everyone deserved at least that. Especially in this new, hostile world. He began massaging her back, working out the years of stress that had built up until sleep finally claimed him.

"What? What happened to laying in wait?" Carlos said the next morning as they all sat at the oblong table in the great hall of the mansion where Alice had just proposed the idea if a rescue mission into the bowls of Umbrella's Japan facility to rescue the others like Kaplan. "We need to help them." Alice said as she gestured to Kaplan. "I know their fate; mutated into mindless killers like those monsters out there, brainwashed & forced to do Umbrella's bidding, no one deserves that kind of fate." Alice said as she scratched Kaplan behind the ears _'It's always nice to know someone cares.' _Kaplan said as he leaned against Alice. "You'd better behave yourself, Kap, unless you want to end up neutered." Carlos growled as he & the dog locked eyes in what could only be described as a good old fashioned alpha male dominance staring contest. Alice silently rolled her eyes at them. "Well, we're not going anywhere unless we pack first, Claire interjected, breaking the tension. Kaplan jumped lightly off the squashy sofa, pausing briefly to give Alice a sloppy lick to the cheek, they flashed a wide, doggy grin at a furious Carlos as he left the room.

Carlos was silent behind the wheel of the hummer staring angrily through the windshield, burning a hole through it. "Penny for your thoughts?" Alice said in an attempt to lighten the mood, she was met with silence. "Look… I am trying to be understanding but we're talking about a DOG here." She said lightly, Carlos flashed an angry gaze at her "He was one hell of a womanizing, player..." He trailed off "…who is now a DOG." Alice emphasized again with a laugh, "You're not a man, you'll never get why it pisses me off." He smoldered. "Oh, have a heart, Carlos. For Christ's sake, the guy lost his since of being _human _give him a break, eh?" Alice said. "D-did you guys ever…" "Fuck no, I don't dig geeks." Alice said with a grin. "But... i DO like dogs, though... JOKE that was a joke!" She said quickly as Carlos turned in his seat & gave her a murderous look, almost swerved off what was left of the decaying highway in the process.

"Well… anyone got an idea?" Claire said as they looked through binoculars at the heavily guarded facility. "We need a diversion." Alice said as she looked down at Kaplan. "Consider it done." He said as he bounded into the darkness. Through her binoculars Alice could see the guards shouting & running for the left corner of the facility. "That's our queue, lets move."

Alice, followed by Carlos, dropped down into the lab, the animals looked at them & a few of them recognized them. "Alice?" Alice wheeled around & came face to face with a large Siberian tiger, & Alice felt the same tugging feeling in her intuition, the same feeling she had when she first looked into Kaplan's eyes. _'Alice… its me… One.'_ The tiger said, in the same telepathic manner of communication. "James?" _'Im not the only one.'_ As he spoke, a grey wolf, & black leopard stepped to the front of their cages. _'Hey.'_ The leopard said, "Rain?" Alice said. _'So, are we busting out of here or what?'_ Alice smiled _'Well we have the love fest later, lets get the fuck out of here.'_ Alice smiled as she & Carlos started opening cages. _'Through the trash chute, go!'_ One said as voices could be heard in the halls, they were getting louder. Animals started pouring through the chute but only one could fit at a time & only half of them made it through before Umbrella agents burst through. _'The others…!'_ Rain said as she looked back at the chute above her. _'No time! Lets MOVE!'_ One ordered as he shoved them along. "Where is the heart of this facility?" Alice asked One 'Follow me.' He said as he took the lead. "Project Alice & company I presume." Justin said as he stood from behind his desk, as if he was expecting them as an army of Umbrella agents swarmed in, flanking Justin & blocking all the exits. A tense standoff ensued with either side awaiting the others move, with a nod from Justin, his agents charged & the battle was on.


	13. Chapter 13

**Chapter 13**

**Disclaimer: Same old, same old, somebody else owns this crap etc…**

Umbrella agent after Umbrella agent fell in Alice's wake by way of her twin Kukris, she had guns of course, but she never liked to use them in close combat, she had always most fond of her two blades, like it mattered anyway, she could dodge bullets; to her they traveled so slowly, like they were crawling through the air, as if they were struggling to get to her. She even knocked away a few that were aimed toward Carlos & the others, sending them flying into the bodies of seven or eight Umbrella agents like deadly a game of ping pong. Soon they were all dead, but Justin was nowhere to be found. A sound of an engine could be heard, they ran to the hanger to see a airship going sonic. _'Shit!'_ Rain said as she swiped the air with her paw. _'That's the least of our problems.'_ One said as a crashing could be heard, a huge licker-like creature the size of a seven forty seven came crashing through the wall, it was so huge that even the large hanger had trouble accommodating it; the creature gave a deafening roar, displaying saber-like canines that had to be at least six feet long. The creature zeroed in on Alice & walked straight up to her, slowly & deliberately. _'Alice! What a pleasant surprise! I never thought I would have the pleasure of being the one who kills you.'_ He said, Alice's eyes flashed in anger. "Spencer." She said venomously.

"Don't think I won't have a problem killing you again." Alice said. _'You can TRY.'_ Spence said as he swiped at her with his massive paw with shocking speed, Alice dodged but not entirely, his paw caught her at the knees & sent her spiraling into the hanger's metal wall, she bounced off & landed heavily on her haunches, trying to catch her breath; he was strong & it caught her off guard, but she tried not to show it. Spence roared & charged at her, she unloaded her twin shotguns at him to no avail, they just ricocheted off his thick, armor-like hide & she was forced to abandon her stand & dodge another swipe from his devastating claws. She felt the wind from the strike whip her hair as she landed on the run, she only had one shot at this, & she had to make it count. She sped up until she was a blur, even Spence couldn't keep track of her, she ran up his back & took hold of his ear, as he roared & furiously swiped at her, she through a activated explosive charge down his throat.

"Everyone down!" She said as she took cover behind one of the airships. They heard the explosion, go off in side him, he let out a massive bellow & spit up a good amount of blood & his entrails. _'Where are you! You bitch!'_ He bellowed as he tore around the hanger, knocking airships aside as though they were toys. Alice had to give her position away as he tossed the one she was hiding under. She knew he was dying, & so did he, it was only a matter of time, she just had to outlast him… if she could. In his dying minutes, which to Alice seemed like hours he bellowed & tramped after her like the animal he was, bent on destruction, until a mistake on Alice's part left her pinned underneath one of Spence's massive claws. _'If I'm going to die, then so are you!'_ he said hoarsely, just then he heard the loud metallic click of a large weapon. Spence lifted his blood read eyes to come face to face with Carlos, his dark eyes ablaze holding a rocket launcher at point blank range. "Get the fuck away from my woman, you ugly fucking bastard." He said as he pulled the trigger, Alice covered her face & head as pieces of Spence's body went flying in every direction, some hitting the hanger's metal walls with a sickening splat. "You ok?" He asked Alice as he helped her up, she smirked at him. "Yeah." She said in her signature, curt manner, but this time it had a playful undertone to it. _'Then what in the hell are we standing around here for? Let's get the fuck out of here!'_ Rain said.

They all fled into the Japanese Hillside as fast as their legs, two or four would take them. behind them they could hear the shouts of Umbrella agents & the roar of distant engines, suddenly, Alice stopped, something was pulling her toward a hollowed out tree trunk to the right, there inside she discovered Kaplan, bleeding profusely from multiple gunshot wounds. _'Alice….. I knew you could do it…'_ He said, his thoughts barely above a whisper. "Come on, Kaplan." Carlos said as he gently picked him up. _'Let me carry him, I am more able.'_ One said, Carlos gently draped him across the tiger's broad back.

They got to the harbor & ran to the Ferry boat they had arrived on, one thing about this new, dead world is one didn't have to sorry about their ride being stolen. "You'll be ok, Kaplan." Alice said as she gently laid him on the bench seat inside the seating compartment of the ferry, Kaplan gripped her forearm with his front paws. _'Don't leave me.'_ He said, Alice sat next to him & put his head in her lap. "You'd better behave yourself, Kap unless you want to be shark bait." Carlos said from his spot at the controls, Alice looked at him & noticed he had a soft, worried look in his eyes. Regardless of his previous feelings, he was genuinely concerned for his former comrade. _'Alice, I'm not going to make it.'_ Kaplan whispered, she could feel his breathing getting more labored, Carlos put the boat on cruise & came to kneel down with the animals, & everyone else. "Don't talk like that, Kaplan, just hang on." Alice said, tears stinging her eyes. Kaplan looked deep into her eyes. _'I always did think you were amazing, but I know you love someone else, I know I gave him a lot of shit, but he's a good guy.'_ He said as he glanced at Carlos with a dogish smile & laid back as the life left him, with tears in her eyes, Alice stood up. "The rest of you go home, from now on I'm handling this **myself**." She said.


	14. Chapter 14

Chapter 14

**Disclaimer: No own, no claim :/**

"What the fuck are you doing!?" Carlos said as he grabbed hold of her arm to stop her as she neared the edge of the ferry, preparing to jump. She froze for a minute, he knew she had the strength to resist him, but instead she turned around & faced him. "No more group missions, I'm not risking anyone else's life for my cause, I'm going after this asshole… & any asshole after him myself, I'm immortal… Can't die, remember?" She said with a humorless smile. "Look, these people need you to protect them, they trust you… they love you… you have a family here." She said, her voice breaking as she averted his gaze, he took hold of her shoulders. "It's not just me." He said.

"He's right." Kmart said as the rest of the group made themselves known. Miranda's little sister, Michelle, squeezed through the pressing of human & animal bodies & came to stand in front of Alice. "Alice." She said, her voice barely above a whisper as she wrapped her arms around her waist. Alice was unsure of what to do at first, this girl hadn't said a word since she had met her & here she was giving her a hug, but her heart softened in spite of herself as she hugged the girl back. "I'm sorry, but this is something I have to do." She said as the girl let go."Alice… come back…. Safe." She said, tears pooling in the corners of her eyes, making them shimmer like emerald pools. Alice gently cradled Kaplan's body in her arms with all the tenderness that one would beset a child in a final good bye before she left. "Give him a good burial." She said to Claire. "Consider it done." She said as she put a hand on Alice's shoulder. "Take care of yourself, we'll be expecting you back." She said as she ushered the group back inside.

"Please come back to me, Alice. I don't know what I would do if you…" He trailed as he held her close & buried his face in the valley of her neck. "You know I can't promise that." She said, Carlos nodded, his expression tortured as he drew her to him. "I love you." He hissed into her ear, making her shiver. "Ditto." She said with a smile as he reluctantly released her, she gave him a salute turned & leapt off the side of the ferry.

Alice knew Justin was in Washington, she just knew. She swam up to a small speedboat & tried the motor, it backfired & died in a sickly cough. She cursed under her breath, the cold Japanese winter sea air causing her to shiver in her wet clothes. She gave it a hearty thump, careful not to use all of her strength & tried it again, it sputtered & coughed but it didn't die, she eased it along, letting it warm up before she pushed the throttle to full. She was determined to make him pay for what he had done. She had made Wesker pay & she was going to make this son of a bitch pay too.

The group was silent as they pulled into the harbor of what was once a charming in some unnamed part of a destroyed world & they remained silent as they entered the mansion that had become their home. Claire gently took Kaplan's body off One's back & gently wrapped him in one of the mansion's spare satin sheets. The whole group followed her outside where Carlos was digging a small grave. Once he had finished, he carefully laid Kaplan's small body into it, careful to treat it with the upmost respect. As he covered him up, Miranda stepped forward, holding a guitar she had found in the mansion. Someone that had lived here must have been some kind of famous musician, because there was a full recording studio downstairs with hundreds of instruments. "Do you mind if I play something?" Carlos smiled. "Not at all." Miranda cleared her throat & began strumming the guitar.

_So,  
>So you think you can tell<br>Heaven from Hell?  
>Blue skies from pain?<br>Can you tell a green field  
>From a cold steel rail?<br>A smile from a veil?  
>Do you think you can tell?<em>

As she sang, she got lost in the music, taking the group with her.

_Did they get you to trade  
>Your heroes for ghosts?<br>Hot ashes for trees?  
>Hot air for a cool breeze?<br>Cold comfort for change?  
>Did you exchange<br>A walk on part in the war  
>For a lead role in a cage?<em>

_How I wish  
>How I wish you were here<br>We're just two lost souls swimming in a fish bowl  
>Year after year<br>Running over the same old ground  
>What have we found?<br>The same old fears  
>Wish you were here<em>

When she was finished, no one clapped due to the somber mood, but she knew that her song was appreciated, she smiled a sad smile as Carlos passed her to stand & say a few words about his crazy friend. "Well, Kap," He said as he put his hand on the handcrafted cross that served as a makeshift grave marker, trying to collect his thoughts. "I know you had it rough, & I'm sorry for the way I treated you, people make mistakes, I hope where ever you are, that you can forgive me. But I want you to know, that through it all, you were always my bro, man. Even if I did give you a lot of shit." He said, wiping his eyes as he made a sign of the cross over his chest & rejoined his post-apocalyptic family.

Justin Stamos swiveled around in his seat as the sounds of Alice slaying the last of his security cushion reached his ears, he nodded politely to her as stalked in with purpose, her twin kukris dripping with blood, like vampire's fangs. Another wave of Umbrella agents could be heard in the hallway, running to their location. Alice twirled around & with a burst of psionic power, slammed the door shut & locked it. "Do you think that killing me will stop us, Alice?" It didn't end with Wesker, & it won't end with me, there are others waiting to take my place. In a blur, Alice had him against the wall by the throat, slowly squeezing the life out of him. "Y-You're wasting your time, I'll never tell you… where they are…" He wheezed, a smile on his face despite his predicament; Alice shrugged coldly as she snapped his neck with a flick of her wrist.

**Disclaimer number 2: I do NOT own the song 'wish you were here' by Pink Floyd, they own it, I claim nothing!**


	15. Chapter 15

Chapter 15

**Disclaimer: I OWN nothing & CLAIM nothing!**

_Summary: I was going to make an epilogue for this portion of the saga, & continue it as a new 'book' of sorts, but as I started writing I saw that it wouldn't work like that, so I had to continue it like a book, don't know how many more chapters this will be, being as I try not to make them *too* long. Thanks to all who read & especially those who R&R'ed (-:_

A lone, heavily clothed figure struggled through the snow, their focus was on an ice cave about a hundred yards in the distance, the storm was getting worse, it was getting dark & the temperature was dropping. The horrible weather made the short journey seem like it took days to make. Still they knew getting there wouldn't mean much rest, the raging storm would mean waking every hour or so to shovel the snow from the entrance of the cave to prevent being snowed in.

The person collapsed, allowing their tired body to slide down the slick, icy wall of the cave. They dug into their pack & found a flashlight & were surprised to find that the cave only went back about fifty feet, so back they walked about half way in, just enough to escape the razor-like wind. The person blew out a haggard breath as they pulled off their goggles, hat & mask, their breath hung icily in the air in front of them for what seemed like an eternity before it began to float lazily towards the roof of the cave, yet another reminder of just how cold it really was.

Ice blue eyes focused to the raging winter storm outside, almost blending in with the frozen landscape, sparks reflecting in them as their owner started a small fire. "Well… fuck." Alice said as she tried to warm her hands against the punitive heat. "Why couldn't have they chosen Bermuda or the Canary Islands for their fucking facility." She said to herself as she huddled closer to the fire, shivering. She wouldn't get frostbite, thanks to the the T virus, but that didn't mean she didn't get cold, she never did like cold weather. Though she knew why they chose this god forsaken place, they thought that she wouldn't be able to find them… but _they_ were wrong.

The morning brought an end to the storm, but it had been a rough night indeed, Alice couldn't remember when she had had so little sleep, waking every hour or so to shovel snow from the mouth of the cave, at least she had been able to keep warm. The pale, winter sun glistened off the fresh power outside & she decided she would catch up on a few Z's before undertaking the cumbersome trek through the fresh, deep snow.

A stark white surgical room… voices she cant decipher…

"…_up the dosage…"_

Figures in bio-hazard suits, the vision becomes clearer, they are standing around an exam table, something is covered by a white sheet; something that looks horribly like a body.

"_Sir…!"_

The shrill screaming of machines can be heard, whatever is under the sheet begins to seize.

"_Sir… vitals are dropping!"_

One of the faceless men pushes through the others, holding a large syringe filled with bright green liquid.

"_Out of my way!" … "…but… sir…!"_

Alice awoke with a start, cold sweat pouring down her face. She drew in a shaky breath as she tried to calm herself, but she couldn't shake the feeling of dread deep in her gut, suddenly, a wave of nausea overcame her & she became physically ill. She wiped her mouth on the sleeve of her jacket & collapsed against the wall of the cave, the cold ice strangely comforting against her flushed skin. There she sat, trying to get a handle, she suddenly felt very ill, she couldn't even remember the last time she had felt so sick. Something was happening but she didn't know what, she didn't know if it was Umbrella or not, she couldn't feel anything technical trying to push its way into her head, but that didn't always mean anything. She tried to stand but her legs wouldn't hold her, she collapsed, her head hitting the hard, icy floor of the cave.

Visions filled Alice's head again, visions of the events all those years ago in Raccoon, events still so fresh in her mind, then LJ, Jill, Angie &… Carlos.

_Carlos._

His name reverberated through her mind, & it made her curl into a fetal position on the cave's packed ice floor in response to the emotional pain that followed. Even after months without seeing him or the rest of the survivors, her feelings for him never changed, she still loved him & she always would, but her vendetta against Umbrella meant she just couldn't return until it was finished, it was just too dangerous for them; on her own it was easier for her to stay off the radar.

Carlos sighed as he took a long drag off his cigarette, he sat on the balcony of the mansion, his feet propped up on the railing. Claire sat wordlessly on the opposite side, unsure of what to say. Alice's departure had marked the start of a slew of shitty luck; they had lost the young boy & his father that Carlos had picked up in a battle with Umbrella along with JD & One. Some of the other animals died from complications from the gene splicing, their cellular makeup unable to handle it. Claire turned as someone approached, it was Leon. "Hey. Can I have a minute with my boy here?" Claire nodded & left them alone.

"You've gotta let go of this shit man, you're killing yourself." Leon said as he took notice of how thin & aged Carlos had become over these last few months. _'We're all worried about you.'_ Another voice said as a large red wolf joined them. Carlos smiled at the sound of his friend's voice, still the same. "Easier said then done." Carlos said tragically. "She'll be back when she thinks its safe enough, it's not just about you, you know. There are others here that cant defend themselves & we can't protect them by ourselves." Leon said._ 'She's just doing what she thinks is right.'_ Nicholai added, Carlos' jaw flexed as his eyes focused on the crumbling floor of the balcony. "I hope she's alright." He said despairingly, Nicholai smiled a wolfish smile. _'I'd be willing to bet you would know if she wasn't.'_ he said, Carlos snorted. "Why do you say that." _'Because… you love her.'_ He said simply. _'Just pay attention to your feelings, Carlos. They will serve you well.'_


	16. Chapter 16

Chapter 16

**Disclaimer: I OWN nothing & CLAIM nothing!**

Alice awoke with a start, she must have passed out it was night again, luckily for her it hadn't snowed anymore while she was out. Suddenly the feeling came over her that she was no longer alone, it wasn't someone she immediately recognized. Slowly, silently, she reached for her pistol & slid it out of the holster. _' You won't need that, I'm not going to hurt you.'_ He said, his mind's voice was thick with a Russian accent. _'My name is Nicholai Ginovaeff, former Umbrella special Ops. I was killed in the Raccoon City incident by zombie dogs.' _The wolf said as he walked toward her. "How did you find me?" _'You weren't too hard to find, a wolf's senses are far superior to that of a domestic dog.'_ He replied. _'I came as a service to a good friend of mine…'_ "Carlos…" She said, the mention of his name made her heart skip a beat or two. _'He is not well… I never thought I would be saying this about him; he is the strongest person I have come to know. Great soldier, great man, great friend. That's why I worry for him, you must come back, Alice. Or I am afraid that we are going to lose him.'_ "But… what about Umbrella…?" Alice trailed off, Nicholai paused, his back facing her. _'That is your choice to make.'_ He said over her shoulder & in an instant, he was gone.

Alice had some thinking to do, she wanted to finish her obligations to the company who had taken so much from her, after so many years, the end was in sight. The remaining living members of the twisted corporation were so close, & turning her back on it when she was so close to finishing it was hard… thoughts of Carlos & the others suddenly popped into her head & she stopped herself. What was she thinking? How could she be so selfish? She admitted to herself that she loved Carlos… but did she really? She became suddenly aware that she had let Umbrella win, essentially. They _were_ controlling her; forcing her to isolate herself from the ones she loved by playing on her fears of getting them killed. With newfound determination she stood, nervousness of what kind of reception she would receive after being absent for so long rose within her but she fought with it.

"Nic." Carlos greeted his comrade as he hopped through the window, into the vast living room of the mansion. "We're going to have to leave soon, food's running out." Carlos said expressionlessly as Claire walked in. "I know, everyone's going to be crushed, they love this place." She said with a tragic smile. "We'll pack up & leave in the morning, we'll probably polish off the least of the canned goods tonight. Rain & the wolves are going to be pissed, all that's left for dinner is canned vegetables." He said, managing to muster a smile, she laughed at his joke though he had a feeling that it was mostly in an effort to brighten his spirits. He did his best to make her believe effort wasn't in vain, she seemed to look vindicated as she, Kmart & Miranda left to get dinner prepared. Nicholai was going to mention that he had seen Alice & tried to convince her to come back to them, but the way their conversation had ended stopped him, he wasn't sure what she had decided & he didn't want to give Carlos false hope. So he simply said nothing as he joined his friend on the couch.

At first light, Alice bundled up with a new since of determination, she had a new resolve, & she wasn't going to pursue Umbrella any longer. She had made the decision. She was going back; she was done playing their game. Suddenly, a footsteps crunching in the snow reached her keen ears. She continued on, she didn't want whoever it was to know they were found out, under her coat, she gripped the handle of her shotgun tightly. Suddenly, an impact blow to her back sent her flying about fifty feet, her hard landing cut a deep trench through the powdery snow. In an instant she was up, her weapons drawn, trying to ignore the shooting pain in her side that signaled something was fractured. Chilling laughter echoed through the quite, frozen dessert. "Did you really think we'd let you go that easily? After we went to all the trouble to lure you out here?" A disembodied voice echoed, Alice circled, her eyes straining to see against the blinding white landscape.

A figure stepped into view, he was long, tall & lanky, his voice was soft & gentle, but it had a cold, calculating undertone to it. Alice's blue eyes were ablaze, she knew who this man was, even before he pulled off his scarf.


	17. Chapter 17

Chapter 17

**Disclaimer: I OWN nothing & CLAIM nothing!**

"Cain." Alice spat his name out like spoiled milk. "We meet again, Project Alice." He said, he looked the same, but she knew he was a clone & who knows what kind of abilities they bestowed onto him as they circled each other like wolves. "I'm done with you & whatever else you are configuring down in the god forsaken lab." "That very well may be, but it doesn't mean that Umbrella is done with _you_." He replied as he shot forward at her, she did a flip over him but a vicious swing from the katana he was carrying left her with a nasty gash in her right thigh.

She watched her blood stained the snow, red blending with white. "The virus running through your veins has one slight design flaw; you see, cold slows the T cell's activity & they go into a kind of suspended animation, thus rendering you powerless until you head somewhere warmer. A wise choice indeed to keep that bit of information hidden." He said triumphantly, it all made since now, why there weren't any infected in the northern climates, the Virus couldn't manifest & mutate there.

_That's_ why she had been feeling so ill; the cells in her body must have been going into hibernation mode due to the extreme cold. She inwardly cursed herself for being so stupid & now she was really in a pickle, now SHE was the one in need of help like she had helped so many others. But no help was coming, no one knew her whereabouts & she doubted Nicholai would say anything about their conversation to Carlos or the others, it just wasn't a thing men tended to do. For the first time since she could remember… Alice was worried… for _herself_.

Cain seemed to since her concern & an evil smile crossed his face. Alice emptied her firearms at him, but couldn't manage a hit, her weakening state & blurry vision made it almost impossible to get a clear shot, Cain had been so confident that he hadn't even drawn his pistols. He moved in on her with his katana, she drew her kukris & a fierce battle ensued.

Alice fought valiantly despite her weakened state & her injuries that were so foreign to her, with the last of her super strength, she threw him back & slashed him pretty good, & Cain fell back, grimacing. Alice waited, Kukris at the ready despite the fact that could barely remain standing. All of the sudden, Cain was pitching forward, blood from a bullet wound in the back of his head stained the snow around him, Alice took this opportunity to make a run for it; but the sun was setting & it was getting colder. She had only gone a few miles before she finally collapsed, unable to carry on any longer. There she lay, face down in the cold snow, unable to rise, she accepted her fate, like a wounded animal being tracked by a hunter. Unconsciousness tugged at her mind & she accepted it, having no strength left to fight it.

"We've got to get her somewhere warmer or we're going to lose her." Alice could hear voices, but she couldn't get to them, it was like her mind was frozen in place. "Get her in, careful." Another said, "I'll drive, you sit back there with her…" That was the last thing she remembered before unconsciousness claimed her again.

Alice's eyes snapped open & she sat bolt upright. She took in her surroundings, unsure of how long she had been out. She found herself in an ancient hunting cabin, the fireplace had a roaring fire going, making the small building quite cozy, maybe even borderline hot, but it felt great. Alice could feel the T cells 'waking up' again so to speak, she could feel her strength returning & her injuries healing. The most painful was the broken ribs, her whole torso felt like it was full of large splinters every time she moved. She threw off the many blankets that covered her & reached for her weapons, her acute hearing picking up on movement outside. Slowly, silently, with all the grace of a cat stalking a mouse, she moved behind the door, her kukris raised & ready, the door opened & she pounced on whoever it was that entered. "Whoa! Hey! Lay off!" Alice recognized the voice immediately, it was Leon. She released him & he gave her an indignant look as he rubbed the sore spot where she had pressed the blade against his throat. "Sorry." Alice said sheepishly. "Well, I see you are feeling better. Carlos'll be thrilled." Alice's stomach fluttered with anticipation. "Carlos? He's here?" "Yeah, we're the ones who found you. You're lucky Carlos is a hell of a good shot."

_Carlos._

"How did you guys find me?" "You'll have to ask Carlos that when he gets back from finding us some food, he wanted me to stock up on firewood, it looks like we're in for one hell of a cold night. But I think that the real reason was that he didn't want you left alone for too long." Leon said with a wink. "For a while there it was touch & go, we thought you weren't going to pull through. You'd better get back in bed before Carlos gets back… if you want to surprise him that is." He added. Suddenly the door to the cabin flew open. "Leon get off your ass & help me with this mother fucker!" Carlos said, grunting with effort as he struggled to drag a freshly killed deer inside & to the small kitchen.

"Here, I did the dirty work, now you have to clean this son of a bitch." Carlos said from the kitchen. Leon grumbled Incoherently as Carlos's heavy footsteps could be heard, growing louder. She took a deep breath, sat up & swung her legs over the bed just as Carlos rounded the corner. They locked eyes for what seemed like an eternity, Carlos seemed unable to tear his gaze away from her, his expression was unreadable as he quickly closed the distance between them. "Carlos I..." but she didn't get to finish, because as soon as he reached her, he pulled her into a passionate, erotic kiss that seemed to go on forever. "_Alice._" He hissed into her ear as they finally parted, needing air. The arousal in his voice was palpable as he nibbled her ear & neck, while using his foot so push the door to the kitchen closed. Leon smiled to himself, he would be a while anyway, plenty of time for them to… take care of business. He reached into his pocket, pulled out a pair of ear plugs & buried them deep in his ears.

"Oh…Carlos…" Alice sighed as he ran his hands agonizingly slow over her naked body, trying to memorize every curve, crease & scar, his hands were rough from years of combat & surviving, but Alice didn't mind, to her the roughness felt like heaven. He brought her legs around his waist as she rose & snaked her arms around his neck, wanting no barriers between them, not even air. Pleasure & passion over took them both as their breathing synchronized in rapid secession & soon they were no longer able to keep their moans sighs of pleasure quiet.

"I hope you two are done fucking each other, because my dogs are barking." Leon said as he came slowly through the door from the kitchen carrying four bowls filled with stew; he found Carlos & Alice in bed, entangled in each other's arms, but at least they were clothed. _'Aw, fuck it.'_ he thought to himself, hell, he was happy for them, they had something that not too many people did even before the world went to shit… & that something was love.

_Thanks to all of you guys who have stuck with me through this, I really hope you R&R, even if its just to say you read it, its always nice to know :). there is one more installment coming, but it will be set a little ways into the future, dont know how far yet til i start writing it._


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